For the Equipping of the Saints
“For the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,” Ephesians 4:12-13.
Those who are in leadership positions in the Body of Christ are meant to be servants for the rest of the Body.
These are not meant to have a select group of position that is to give them privilege, but rather, an emphasis upon nurturing and helping others to grow into their full potential.
Many seem to have the mistaken notion that those who are identified in the five-fold ministry, are to simply do those things that identify them in their gifting as apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers.
And of course it is true that those ministry gifts should pin-point their areas of expertise and qualities in Christ.
But just because someone has the qualities of an apostle and is seen as someone who oversees various ministries and individuals, doesn’t mean that this encapsulates their position.
For without the qualities of a Father unto many, without the ability to give sound counsel and direction to many, those exterior mandates fall short.
Many of these typically have an entrepreneurial mindset and are able to take risks and perform difficult tasks.
People typically consider an apostle to be a type of missionary or a church planter, and yet this is a very narrow view.
Those who are set as office prophets to the Body of Christ also are to have qualities of equipping others to come into their full measure and stature.
Again many seem to have the mistaken notion that anyone in this position is merely to give words of prophecy unto a nation or people. And while this is true, there is so much more entailed with this.
For we see part of this function identified in Jeremiah 1:10,
“See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant.”
For if one would tear down the walls of complacency and apathy, then something else needs to be built again where once it had been torn down.
Those who are fledglings in the prophetic, need to have a father who would lead them to higher ground.
There are very severe spiritual battles to be fought almost daily, and a realization that self must always be crucified and emptied, for the anointing to come.
There is a training that must be implemented in order for those who are young can learn the ways of the Spirit and thus come unto full measure of what God has intended for them.
The same is true of those who are evangelists and pastors and teachers. For as one would gather others into the Kingdom, then their job would not be to just to give great speeches of evangelism and to do a role call to come to Christ, but again, to find a way to equip others.
And yet there are so many different types of programs in the church that perhaps teach a way to direct others to evangelize and yet perhaps they are man-made in their principles instead of being spirit driven.
All-in-all we are to be considered as servants and this is true of anyone who is a believer.
For we know that the Son of Man came to be a servant unto many. He considered equality with God not something to be grasped.
“Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men,” Philippians 2:5-7.
Selah,
~ Stephen Hanson
Stephen Hanson of In His Truth Ministries came to the LORD is a special way in 1975 and has prophesied regularly since. In these end-time birthing pangs we are reminded that judgment must first begin with the household of God. Will we be prepared and ready?
Wonderful.